Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Shannon Suvaljko is leading the WA drivers’ premiership table with 61 winners, a tally he is sure to improve on by guiding outstanding filly Water Lou to victory in the final event at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
While Water Lou will be at an extremely short quote, Suvaljko suggests punters consider a few of his less-fancied drives, including Name In Lights, who has a losing sequence of 54.
Suvaljko has given punters a lead by choosing to drive Name In Lights ahead of the Debbie Padberg-trained stablemate You Fly With Me and the Matt Scott-trained Follow The Music.
Name In Lights, who will begin from the No. 2 barrier in the TABtouch International Form Pace, is a handy frontrunner who showed a welcome glimpse of form last Friday week when he raced in fifth place, three back on the pegs, before fighting on to finish second to speedy mare Queeninthecorner when the final quarters were run in 28sec. and 28.6sec.
“Name In Lights is going pretty good and I think he can lead,” said Suvaljko. You Fly With Me, a winner at six of his 41 starts, will be driven by Chris Voak. Deni Roberts will drive Follow The Music from barrier four. He has been unplaced at his past five starts after Suvaljko drove him to a win over 2190m at Bridgetown on March 10.
Suvaljko gives Feeling Aces, a seven-year-old trained by Scott, a good chance in the opening event, the 2130m Download The TABtouch App Pace, in which the gelding will start from the inside of the back line, immediately behind eight-year-old polemarker The Kraken, a noted frontrunner.
“Feeling Aces has covered extra ground at his past two starts and he goes ten lengths better when he races on the fence,” said Suvaljko. “We will be close up on Friday night and he sprints better from the rails, and he is capable of winning.”
Feeling Aces, who has a losing sequence of 14, is likely to find the Colin Brown-trained Loucid Dreams his toughest rival. Loucid Dreams will begin from the No. 5 barrier with Maddison Brown in the sulky.
Loucid Dreams should appreciate a drop in class after trailing the pacemaker Dominus Factum and finishing a sound third behind Solesseo Matuca and Acuto last Friday night.
Suvaljko said that State Of Heaven (barrier one) in race two and Rupert Of Lincoln (inside of the back line) in race three were each-way prospects.